International Business Machines Corporation

Hin P Lee

Lubomyr Taras Romankiw

Daniel A Nepela

John Casimir Slonczewski

Bernell E Argyle

Sol Krongelb

Dean A Herman, Jr

Bojan Petek

Thomas J Beaulieu

Thomas C Arnoldussen

Douglas Johnson Werner

David John Seagle

Mohamad Towfik Krounbi

Neil Leslie Robertson

Albert John Wallash

Peter Beverley Phipps

Timothy Scott Hughbanks

Disclosed is a planarizing layer for use in an MR read/inductive write head combination, and a method for constructing the same. In the preferred embodiment, a planarizing layer comprising a plurality of planar sections of conductive material is formed in the plane of the lower pole piece of an inductive head. The planar sections, in cooperation with the lower pole piece, provide a substantially planar surface on which to form the inductive coil. Two of the planar sections are electrically coupled to respective MR leads, and include protrusions extending from the perimeter of the inductive coil to enable electrical access by a pair of read terminal pads. A third planar section is electrically coupled to the inner coil tap of the inductive coil, and includes a protrusion extending from the perimeter of the inductive coil to enable electrical access by a write terminal pad.

Apparatus for simultaneous write head planarization and lead routing

A method of lapping magnetoresistive (MR) heads individually which provides an MR element having a desired height with minimized skew is described. During fabrication of the MR head, one or more shunt resistors are formed between the edge of the MR element and the head air bearing surface. The shunt resistors are electrically connected at each end to extensions of the MR electrical leads and connected to the MR element and to each other at points between the ends forming a resistor network. During lapping of the MR head, the resistance of the resistor network is measured by an Ohmmeter connected between the MR element leads. As portions of the shunt resistors are ground away, the changes in the measured resistance of the resistor network are used to monitor and control any skew in the lapping process.

Lapping process for a single element magnetoresistive head

In a magnetic read/write transducer, the elements of the magnetoresistive (MR) and inductive heads are shorted together and to the slider substrate to provide a low resistance, conductive path bypassing the MR sensor element and minimizing electrical current through the MR sensor element during discharge of static electric charge. The MR sensor element, the MR conductive leads, the MR magnetic shield elements and inductive pole tips exposed at the slider air bearing surface are shorted together and to the slider substrate by a layer of conductive material, such as tungsten, formed over the slider air bearing surface. The conductive layer shorts the head elements together and to the slider substrate thus protecting the head against ESD/EOS damage during subsequent handling and assembly. The conductive layer is removed by wet etching prior to placing the magnetic head into operation in a magnetic storage system.

Shorted magnetoresistive head elements for electrical overstress and

Method and apparatus for simultaneous write head planarization and lead

Magnetic thin film structures are disclosed including a laminate of a layer of nonmagnetic material sandwiched between first and second layers of magnetic material and at least one edge closure layer of magnetic material disposed on a side edge of the laminate with the edge closure layer being in magnetic contact with the first and second layers of magnetic material. The edge closure layer eliminates magnetic edge closure domains and magnetic edge-curling walls in the yoke and poletip regions, or in a fluxguide of a magnetic recording head to substantially eliminate Barkhausen noise and wall network instabilities. Multiple layer laminates are also disclosed having a plurality of nonmagnetic layers each of which are sandwiched between layers of magnetic material and wherein the laminate includes edge closure layers that contact all the magnetic layers. Several methods are disclosed for fabricating the laminate. In one class of technique, the side edges are deposited together with a top layer in a single plating operation. In an another embodiment, the side edge closure layers are separately plated. Another embodiment provides for a layer of antiferromagnetic material deposited between the nonmagnetic layer and one of the magnetic layers to provide additional anisotropy.

Magnetic thin film structures fabricated with edge closure layers

Magnetic thin film structures including a laminate of a layer of nonmagnetic material sandwiched between first and second layers of magnetic material and at least one edge closure layer of magnetic material disposed on a side edge of the laminate with the edge closure layer being in magnetic contact with the first and second layers of magnetic material. The edge closure layer eliminates magnetic edge closure domains and magnetic edge-curling walls in the yoke and poletip regions, or in a fluxguide of a magnetic recording head to substantially eliminate Barkhausen noise and wall network instabilities. Multiple layer laminates are also disclosed having a plurality of nonmagnetic layers each of which are sandwiched between layers of magnetic material and wherein the laminate includes edge closure layers that contact all the magnetic layers. Several methods are disclosed for fabricating the laminate. In one class of technique, the side edges are deposited together with a top layer in a single plating operation. In an another embodiment, the side edge closure layers are separately plated. Another embodiment provides for a layer of antiferromagnetic material deposited between the nonmagnetic layer and one of the magnetic layers to provide additional anisotropy.

Method of fabricating magnetic thin film structures with edge closure

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San Jose, CA, United States of America

Hin P Lee